Saturday, February 7, 2015

The Eye of Reason – Part I

The most outspoken, yet
fairly reasonable, critic of the Jaredite barges I have yet found is Kent Ponder,
Ph.D., who taught at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, and who credits
himself as very knowledgeable of construction engineering and ship building
(for a complete understanding of his intellectual objections and our logical, scientific
answers to those objections, see the book Who
Really Settled Mesoamerica, specifically Appendix XVI, “A Scholars Critical
View of Jaredite Barges”). On the other hand, most objections are based on
little knowledge, and even less understanding of what it is they are
criticizing.

In Ponder’s “Order of Procedure,” openings in a boat would be built
during the framing stage of construction, not afterwardPonder’s overall objection is
not based on flippant criticism and emotion as are most, but based on what he
calls “The Eye of Reason,” and in one such area, what he calls “The Order of
Procedure.” Using these premises, he extensively covers the fact that,
according to the Book of Ether, the Lord had the Jaredites build all eight
barges and it was not until after that time that the brother of Jared realized
they had no light and no ventilation (breathable air exchange).His critique of this begins with:
“First, calmly
think about what your own
planning would entail if you were told that you and some friends would have to
hand-build small, submersible boats in which you and your family would be
taking a year-long ocean voyage, accompanied by flocks and herds of animals.”
He then goes on to say: “Following the Lord's
specifications, the workmen built each boat with just one tight-fitting door, and no window or other opening. Construction of all eight boats was completed, per the Lord's personal
instructions …next, the Brother of Jared looked at the finished boats and
wondered for the first time,
Whoa! How will we breathe in these things?...It was only then, that he noticed
that the boats were air-tight (He also noticed they were totally dark inside).”

It is completely dark inside a modern submarine without artificial
light. If the barge was a self-contained tube-like affair as a submarine,
gutting the insides first (such as in a Baobab tree as we have mentioned) before cutting any opening would be understandable.
After all, the Jaredites built “according to the instructions of the Lord”
(Ether 2:16). Obviously, they knew from the beginning what the vessels were for
and how they were to be usedHe then goes on to say: “Now let's pause to consider: How do the eyes
of faith and reason interpret this account? The LDS eye of faith typically accepts
the story unfazed. But consider the following "Eye of Reason and Common
Sense" questions…” He then asks a series of forty questions, which he
concludes with: “It
seems to me that all 40 of the above questions are honestly, fairly and
sensibly stated.”And
they are. Based on his singular viewpoint, each question is reasonably stated
and both fair and sensible in content. Each is a valid question and deserves an
answer (for the questions and answers, see the book Who Really Settled Mesoamerica, as stated above). While we will not endeavor to
discuss and answer each question here, let’s just illustrate the reasonableness
of his critique with the first question: “Is it reasonable that men smart
enough to build such watertight and airtight boats, following divine instructions, would do all the planning, material
gathering and construction, and finish all eight before the question of
breathing and seeing occurred to any of them? How could they not have noticed
this problem for months?”

Using his “Eye of Reason,” let’s
consider the circumstances at the time. First, the Jaredites, though living in
the area of the Tower Nimrod and his followers were building, were not
themselves involved. What experience they had in building ships is
questionable, since they were far more likely to have been farmers and
herdsmen, as Noah and the earlier Patriarchs had been, and were down through
Abraham. Secondly, the brother of Jared, who talked with God and received
specific and detailed instruction from Him, was being obedient and following
that instruction. Third, it is not likely that the Lord laid out the entire
plan in the beginning, but instructed him one step at a time. Such is
illustrated in Nephi’s later experience in building his ship when he said, “And
he did show me from time to time after what manner I should work the timbers of
the ship” (1 Nephi 18:1), and “I did go into the mount oft, and I did pray oft
unto the Lord; wherefore the Lord showed unto me great things” (1 Nephi 18:3).Consequently, the brother of
Jared worked, along with his brethren, in carrying out each step in the order
it was given by the Lord. While some people, especially today, would think to
question the Lord in his methods and the problems encountered along the way,
the brother of Jared was a man of great faith that even the Lord acknowledged
(Ether 3:9), and was a man who had perfect belief in the Lord (Ether 3:15), and
one of great knowledge (Ether 3:19). Such a man had full and complete trust in
the Lord and awaited his instruction and carried them out to the fullest. Then,
when the Lord was finished with his instruction, Jared looked around and a
couple of problems were obviously evident, and since the Lord did not instruct
him further, he inquired of the Lord about the light and ventilation.

What Ponder and most people today
do into seem to realize about the Lord, is this one very important fact—he will
instruct and guide us so far, then it is up to us to take the next step. In
this fashion, the Lord sat back and waited for the brother of Ether to figure
some things out for himself. And when he inquired, the Lord took that
opportunity to further instruct the brother of Jared on some finer points of
what we would call ‘scientific knowledge’ today. One: You cannot have windows like
what you are used to in your world, because the pressures of the sea pounding
against them will dash them to pieces (no mention is made of glass and none is
implied—Noah had windows, but they were wooden covered [shuttered], and wood,
like glass, can be broken and smashed and dashed to pieces under extreme
force and pressure);Two: You cannot build fires in
the enclosed spaces of the airtight vessel because the fumes (carbon monoxide
poisoning) would eventually kill you;Then the Lord took another tact,
which he often does, and asked the brother of Jared to figure out the answer to
his own question: “what will ye that I should prepare
for you that ye may have light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the
sea?” (Ether 2:25). It is also interesting and noteworthy that the Lord did not
ask that question until after he had reiterated all that he had already done
for the Jaredites (Ether 2:24).Now,
the brother of Jared, with the burden on his own shoulders, not only had the
task of figuring out how light could be provided, but as a result, experienced
the most exciting and spiritual moment of his life and as a result eventually saw the
finger of the Lord, then the entire personage of the Lord (Ether 3:8-16).In
what many critics refer to as the stupidity of the Jaredite God, the Lord took
this opportunity to both instruct, present an opportunity for growth and
development, and provide a spiritual experience that not only would have a
life-long impression on the brother of Jared, upon the Jaredites overall, but
also on millions of people thereafter who have and will yet read of this
account. It is always interesting that while critics revile and rail against
the Lord’s methods, mankind itself is benefited from the simple and meaningful
acts of God's omnipotent knowledge and understanding.There is also an interesting
secondary message here. While Ponder and other critics think this Jaredite
event is bordering on a lack of reason and improper “Order of Procedure,” let
us consider that a higher power with ultimate knowledge far beyond ours, asks
us to build something that will take us to a far off planet via a means far
beyond our experience and understanding. We are given the plans. Do we look at
the plans and question them? Do we build the first, second or third stage, then
stop and question the validity of the design and our construction of it? Or do
we finish the plan first, then ask for further information?

In an interesting parallel story, Earth designers, because of their “Eye of Reason” and “Order of
Procedure,” decided to add a chair to the design provided by a higher
intelligence for the safety and comfort of the single passenger, which nearly
resulted in her deathIn a movie some years ago a somewhat similar occurance took place. It was called “Contact” and starred
Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey. In the movie they built this plan for a
space vehicle supplied by a distant, unknown power. When finished, they
realized the vehicle had no seat, so they decided to build one in--after all, any vehicle should have a seat, right? However, in
the course of the vehicle's “flight,” the seat was torn apart from the unknown
forces involved in the transit and could have killed the occupant had she been
in it at the time. Obviously, the higher power knew and understood this, but
the humans did not. While this is just a fictitious story, it does show the idea that a higher power probably has more knowledge and understanding than those he is trying to help.The point is, the Lord knows all
things and his instruction is always accurate and beneficial. If we cannot
understand this at the time, we need to have faith and carry out the task at
hand as instructed. When completed, we can then look it over and ask…but, as
with the case of reading the Jaredite account, we have to ask (evaluate) with
an eye to understanding, not one of criticism because of our own lack of understanding
and knowledge.The brother of Jared followed the
Lord’s instruction and did as he was told. The Ponders and critics of the world
unknowingly seek to question and ridicule the things of God through placing,
whether knowingly or not, their knowledge and understanding above that of God.(See the next post, “The Eye of
Reason – Part II,” for more on the way the Lord does things as opposed to the
way man thinks it ought to be done)